experiences not things

This isn’t meant or brag or sound like my life is more glamorous than it truly is, from what I understand that’s what facebook and instagram are for. These highs are meant purely as some ammunition to fuel your creative juices and maybe one or two ideas to piggyback off of as you look for new ways to grow into the best version of yourself on a budget this coming year. But also, I think this can be a valuable exercise to acknowledge, and in doing so, better understand the type of things? Experiences? People? That make you happy when you look at a large amount of time and filter out the white noise.

I found that buying things didn’t seem to even make the top 20, although I’d acknowledge that things like the yard sale bike I bought for $30 or the $20 I spent on a kayak rental or airfare did play a part in SOME experiences, they are the exception to what brought happiness.

If you have something, an activity, hobby, or passion that you feel others could use for their own enjoyment, please feel free to post it in the comments below.

5) Doing a kitchen makeover with my Mom.

6) Kayaking a river in Florida.

7) Seeing my sister get married

9) Helping my sister move into her new house.

10) Chainsawing wood from my chainsaw mill

11) Driving with my niece for the first time after she got her learners permit.

12) Waking up at 4 am to take pictures of a lake bed as the fog rolled in at the first purple light of sunrise.

13) Exploring my childhood house in the fall and see how much both I and it have changed.

14) Seeing my dad take on a new love and skill in woodworking as a 73 year old.

15) Structuring my living area in ways that gave me both more space and creature comforts (Basically I decorated and moved some furniture but it eliminate daily eye sores, inconveniences, and added the visual and structural precision, and flow that I see every day.

16) Breaking my personal land speed record.

17) Almost every conversation I got to explore with my siblings and friends.